These 3 Cash Generating Machines Will Help You Sleep at Night

Companies with competitive advantages and strong cash flows can deliver market-beating returns over the long run, and are also well-positioned to capitalize during market downturns. Mastercard (NYSE: MA) operates the world's second-largest payments network, helping customers move money globally through its credit and debit cards and other payment products. Mastercard's payment network gives the company a major competitive advantage because of the network effect, meaning as the network grows, it's harder for competitors to come in and take away business.